Horse Trading

There are two camps setting up on the progressive side on the Medicare buy-in/OPM-run insurance compromise in lieu of the public option.

Camp #1 believes it's a good deal because it will now be far easier in the future to expand the buy-in to cover more and more people to get to a "Medicare for all" single-payer system, or something like it where there's private supplemental insurance in addition to the federal plan (the current Canadian system).  This camp includes Chris Bowers, Bob Cesca, Susie Madrak, and BooMan.

Camp #2 believes the deal is complete and utter garbage, roping the Dems into expanding a system that doesn't work and that will ultimately hand the country over to the Republicans and the insurance companies.  This camp includes Jane Hamsher mostly, and while I like Jane, I'm going to have to go with Camp #1 on this with a caveat.

The caveat is that there's a lot of detail stuff here at the micro level that could easily turn this all into Jane's nightmare scenario, and that's important to remember.  The fight's not over yet.

Not even close.